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so it seems the chandlers, who were kidnaped by pirates (and dont mean master bates) the other week, were watched while it happened by the royal navy and they done nothing!! of cause this has only come to light by one of the unhappy crew who has reported it to the press.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8359575.stm

should the government now pay the ransom after its mistake? i mean mistake as the captain must of asked london to open fire or do nothing.

what example does this set to the next lot of pirates? ask the navy for help in kidnapping the next lot?

it seems we can swan into other places in the world on a whim, but when a pure act of violence is needed we stand back!!

Stupid restrictive rules of engagement probably caused this. So much of the rules of engagement are written to keep things legal and free from risk of suing etc yet ends up meaning you cant do your job!!!

Yes to intervene would have carried a lot of risk but you dont have to go in and blow up the yacht!!! Create a standoff type situation and work from there.

The only reason the pirates continue to do what they do is they know they can get away with it and its big money. "arresting" the pirates wont work as there are hundreds more to replace them and being arrested isnt that bad. Killing them wont make much difference either.

But what WILL make a difference is getting everyone to stop paying the ransoms, WHATEVER the cost!!! Yes people will be killed and some ships destroyed but so be it. If theres no money in piracy in the region then they will stop doing it.

What we OUGHT to be doing via our government/civil servants/diplomats is working with the governments of the countries that these pirates come from to stop them at source. If we don't do that, the problem just escalates as others see their success and also turn to crime.

The big problem with Somalia is that there is no central government in total control of the country - its a complete mess!!!

So the only way to deter the pirates is take away the money!!! if that means paying no ransoms then so be it. If it means having armed teams on every merchant ships in the area with the risk that involves, then so be it.